Confidentiality
This policy has been developed in order to maximise support to students with special needs in compliance with the Special Education Needs & Disability Act 2001 whilst maintaining their rights to privacy and confidentiality in compliance with the Data Protection Act 1998.
University Responsibility
We, the Enabling Support Team in Student Services, will maintain the confidentiality and integrity of information about students and of communications with students. It will be requested that a similar duty of confidentiality is accepted by those with whom information is to be shared.
How we obtain information about you.
We may receive information about you from a variety of sources such as:
- UCAS forms (or other application forms) if you identify a disability
- Your School within the University
- Registry, Accommodation Office, Student Services, etc.
- Other agencies, such as Social Services, Schools, FE colleges, funding bodies etc
- Parents or Guardians
- Yourself
Information we might hold.
Enabling Support holds paper-based and electronic information on file for individual students with additional support needs. This information is kept in a secure environment. It is shared amongst our professional staff when appropriate and is only released outside our office with your written consent and on a ‘need to know' basis. It may be essential for us to collect some of the following information to implement your support:
- Medical evidence of a disability
- Educational psychologist's assessment report
- Previous study aids assessment report
- Course details
- Correspondence with your funding body
- Your personal student support requirements
- Other correspondence
We will keep files for 3 years after we believe that you have withdrawn from the University. Thereafter files will be destroyed. Although the University central student information database identifies students' disability status access to this data is restricted.
Why we need this information.
The Enabling Support Team can advise you regarding your support needs whilst you are studying at the University. We can also help you to apply for funding to support your disability related needs and help you to implement any support recommendations within the University. The information we hold enables us to ensure that we are able to support you as fully as possible.
What we will do with this information.
Medical Evidence or Educational Psychologist Report.
- This will be held in Enabling Support, as it is a requirement of the University that we keep this as evidence of the requirements for any special considerations for examinations.
- This may be copied and sent to your funding body in order to establish your eligibility for funding to support your needs.
Access Centre Assessment Reports.
- We will keep a copy of any Access Centre Assessment Report in Enabling Support and may use it to produce personal student support requirements.
Course Details.
- This is usually generic information relating to your course of study. It is used by the Enabling Support Team or may be forwarded to an Access Centre to help formulate your Access Centre Assessment Report.
Correspondence with your funding body.
- All other correspondence with your funding body is usually not circulated outside Enabling Support.
ES Student Support Requirements.
- Your personal student support requirements (SSR) will be produced from the information you provide to Enabling Support. A copy of your SSR will be kept in our file, a copy will be given to you and a copy sent to your School ES Co-ordinator. The School ES Co-ordinator will ensure that your SSR is circulated as necessary and forwarded each year to ensure your continued support. Other support information may also be sent to central services e.g. examinations unit, accommodation, library, etc, where relevant.
Other correspondence.
- All other correspondence will normally be kept in your file. When, necessary, copies may be forwarded to your department or to other central services at our discretion.
Student Responsibilities.
It is your responsibility to tell us if you prefer us to limit who we send information to.
N.B. If you indicate that you DO NOT WISH the fact that you are seeking assistance to be shared it is important to realise that it may cause severe difficulties in arranging the most appropriate support for you.
Exceptional Circumstances: The following standard exceptional practices regarding confidentiality are important to note:
- Staff will take reasonable action (which may involve informing responsible authorities) if they believe, in their professional judgement, that you are at risk of serious injury to yourself or others.
In some legal situations, staff and/or their records can be summoned. The Director of Student Services also has access to all records if required.
Parents and Guardians.
It is our policy to deal with all enquiries directly with the student concerned. We may talk with parents or guardians with the student's written permission to discuss general support provided by the Enabling Support Team however, we will not discuss any personal information.